SACO: A Different Kind of War

SACO's unconventional, inspirational and sometimes-provocative American commander, Milton Miles, wrote the definitive book about SACO, called "A Different Kind of War." The name, of course, was a reference to the unique situation that Miles, and SACO, faced during World War II – fighting not just the Japanese in China but sometimes also his own country's military leaders. Weighing in at a hefty 629 pages, the book was published posthumously in 1967 largely through the unrelenting efforts of his widow, Wilma.

Milton Miles devoted his life to the U.S. Navy. Born in Arizona territory in 1900, he volunteered for the Navy in 1917 when America entered World War I, then he enrolled in the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis in 1918. He graduated in 1922 and was commissioned as an Ensign, then was assigned to China, where he served until 1927. He came back to America but returned to China in 1937, four years before the U.S. entered World War II.

Milton acquired the nickname "Mary" at the Naval Academy, in reference to a popular silent film actress of the day, Mary Miles Minter, and it stuck. For the rest of his life, he was known by his friends and close colleagues as Mary Miles. He married Wilma Jerman in 1925, who preferred the nickname "Billy." Thus the couple, in a reversal of normal gender names, were known as "Mary and Billy."

During the early days of World War II in 1942, Commander Miles was selected by the Navy's highest ranking officer, Admiral King, to lead the U.S. Navy's effort in China, largely due to his prior experience in China and his familiarity with the Chinese culture. As the American SACO leader in China, and reflecting his dry sense of humor, he asked for men who were "sturdy individuals, but a little crazy – but only slightly so and not as much as I am, in order to preserve for the skipper the traditional RHIP (rank has its privileges)."

SACO volunteers had to be prepared to eat and live in the Chinese style. Miles especially stressed that he wanted no "old China hands" from America, with their superior and condescending attitudes towards the Chinese. Commander Miles was promoted to Captain and then Rear Admiral during his tenure as the American leader of SACO, which lasted until September 1945 when he returned to America. He was promoted to Vice Admiral after the war and led several cruiser divisions in the late 1940s.

Miles continued serving with the Navy in various roles until he received a medical retirement in 1958. He began working on his memoirs of SACO and China literally the next day, wanting to finally tell the story of the little-known group whose commendable exploits had been shrouded in wartime secrecy. His wife Billy worked with him tirelessly during the next three years, typing and editing as Milton wrote furiously. He died of cancer in 1961 at age 60 with the lengthy manuscript finished but needing editing and organization. Billy was determined to have her husband's book published, so for the next many years she worked with Doubleday publishers and the writer Hawthorne Daniel to edit and finish it. The first edition of "A Different Kind of War" was published by Doubleday in 1967.

My father, Lieutenant (j.g.) Don Leu, served with SACO in China under Rear Admiral Miles and thought highly of him. Miles had opened SACO's main training camp, at Happy Valley near Chungking, in the summer of 1942 and my father, in the fall of 1945, was put in charge of shutting it down. That was after the war had ended and shortly after Miles had left China and returned to America. My father felt an affinity with Miles partly because they both disdained the bureaucracy and regimented thinking that was (and is) widely prevalent in military service. They both favored pragmatism over protocol, preferring to implement creative solutions to unique situations rather than always doing things "by the book." My dad obtained a copy of "A Different Kind of War" soon after it was printed and, for the rest of his life, it remained one of his most prized possessions.

I read "A Different Kind of War" a few months after my father died in 2002 so I could better understand his experience in China. As I turned the pages, I learned why the book had meant so much to him. It's a captivating story of how two countries, the U.S. and China, came together during the war to achieve a common goal, despite military bureaucracies and petty jealousies that the leaders of SACO, especially Miles himself, had to contend with. I was especially fascinated with the close friendship that Miles forged with his Chinese counterpart, the enigmatic and powerful General Tai Li. The general, as I mentioned earlier, had once offered my father a lucrative position in China if he would stay and continue to train the Chinese Nationalist troops after the war.

Miles wrote in a straightforward and vivid manner, carrying the reader with him across the vast expanses of China. I thought "A Different Kind of War" was one of the finest books I had read in many years, even aside from my family's personal connection to the story. In fact, the book has become a treasure in our family.

"A Different Kind of War" had been out of print for nearly two decades when a Second Printing was made in Taiwan in 1986. I have a copy of both the first and second editions and there is a marked difference. The text is the same in both versions, of course, but the photos in the first edition are far superior, as is the general quality of the book. The first edition is also a fair bit larger and heavier. Most used copies of the book available on the market now, through sites like Amazon, are of the second edition, the first edition being exceptionally rare. If you're thinking about buying a copy of the book, be sure you understand if it's a first or second edition because, as I say, there is a difference in heft and quality.

I wanted to share with readers portions of my First Edition copy of "A Different Kind of War," so I've posted here a few excerpts, including all of the photos in the book (arranged, just as in the book, in four different groups that were placed throughout the book). I've also included below the first three pages of text from the book, to give you a flavor for Miles' style of writing. It's an exceptional book, as I say, and either edition is a "must read" for anyone who's interested in SACO.

One of the most striking passages in "A Different Kind of War" is towards the end of the book, when Miles described the last letter he received from General Tai Li. That was in early 1946, shortly before the general was killed in a plane crash. Tai Li poignantly summarized, in his letter to Miles, the accomplishments of SACO and his hopes for China's future. His words were prophetic:

"The achievements of SACO and the everlasting friendship between the two of us not only concern the welfare of a small portion of our peoples, but will also have a great bearing on the friendly relations of the people of both our countries. China, after eight years of bloody warfare – after long suffering and much bitterness – should from now on make great strides in her work of construction, thus rejuvenating her strength. However, being backward in many ways, both technically and economically, we will continue to need the helping hand of your friendly nation. Furthermore, judging from the situation of the world at large, the destiny of these two great nations are certain, henceforth, to be deeply interwoven.

You and I, for a long time, have shared the same kind of sweetness and bitterness, and we have the same kind of understanding of the present situation. I am firmly convinced that we will continue not only to value the joint successes we have shared in the past, but also that we will work for the future benefit and welfare for our two countries.

Difficulties and hindrances are inevitable during the initial stages of almost any enterprise. Nevertheless, if the aim is not merely to benefit a small minority, and if we proceed with determined perseverance, the result – whether meritorious or the opposite – will be known to the world. All those who have distrusted and failed to understand will eventually come to believe and comprehend.

It is my belief that some sort of encouraging and widely comforting step is needed now. I believe also that the situation hereafter will require the continuation of our most enlightened and cooperative spirit."